Soul Card
by IcecreamSyndrome
Summary: All Tyson Mathews wanted was to be accepted into a dueling school, but after being rejected from five different schools he was ready to give up hope. All of that changes with the arival of a strange letter and an even stranger transformation...
1. Metamorphosis

**Soul Card**

Author's notes: Hi everybody and welcome to my first Yugioh GX fic! I usually write for Pokémon, but this is an idea that's been rolling around in my head for a while now and I would like to expand my writing range to other fandoms. Also, I know it says Yugioh GX, but as this takes place a few years after the events of the series, I probably won't include any of the cannon characters, although the y _do _exist and will likely be mentioned at some point. If you think that this would be better in the general Yugioh category, tell me and I'll change it! ^_^

Ok, now that I'm sure that your all tired of hearing me ramble…on with the disclaimer! Sorry, it's gotta be done!

Disclaimer: I don't own Yugioh, Yugioh GX, or anything else I don't own.

Now that that's over with, on with the fanfic! :)

* * *

><p>Chapter 1: Metamorphosis<p>

It was approximately eleven o' clock at night, sometime around late summer. Thunder rumbled in the distance, signaling the approaching storm.

A cat was running through the city streets, something small dangling from its mouth. As it landed gracefully on top of a fence, the glow of the moon illuminating its features, one could see at once that it was no ordinary cat. Its fur was purple, with strange orange swirl markings covering its body, save for its stomach, which was bright pink. Its left eye was a bright green, while the right eye was a light purple. A red ribbon with a bell attached to it was tied around its neck. The bell made a pleasant ringing sound as the strange animal leapt off of the fence towards the ground below.

The cat moved quickly, deliberately, towards a small two-story house nearby, pausing long enough to deposit the item it had been carrying onto the front porch. The kitten began to cry and the cat began furiously licking the tiny body with its warm pink tongue. A purring sound filled the air, followed by the tinkling of bells and what sounded strangely like a lullaby.

Hush now, dear one, Mother is here.  
>Let all your dreams take wing.<br>The rat won't bite,  
>Nor the dog its teeth bare,<br>Your Mother is here.  
>The mice shall dance,<br>The birds shall sing,  
>May you sleep without a care.<br>And as you grow, and laugh, and change,  
>Remember, my dear one, Mother is always near.<br>So close your eyes,  
>May you sleep all through the night.<br>Now is your chance,  
>Your destiny calls,<br>As clear as the bells do ring.  
>Though it may seem strange,<br>Remember my son,  
>Mother is always there.<p>

Hearing its mother's song, the tiny kitten let out a squeaky yawn before curling up into a ball and drifting off to sleep.

The cat turned to leave, purr rumbling within her throat as she watched her child sleeping so contently. Hesitating, she glanced back at the front porch one last time, wondering if she was really doing the right thing. A wave of pain surged through her body, informing her that she couldn't worry about that now, and without a second glance, the she-cat took off running, her body beginning to fade, becoming transparent, until she disappeared altogether.

Minutes later, a glow filled the porch where the kitten slept, followed by the soft sounds of a baby in deep sleep.

* * *

><p>Fifteen years later…<p>

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN I DIDN'T GET INTO DUEL ACCADAMY?"

Fifteen-year-old Tyson Mathews stared at the rejection letter in dismay before crumpling it up into a ball and chucking it across the yard. This was the fifth dueling school he'd tried, and failed, to get into, and apparently they'd gotten tired of seeing him duel and decided to start sending out the rejection letters straight off.

It wasn't that he always lost, more like he rarely won. Whether it was something to do with his deck, or he just plain stunk, he wasn't sure, but wasn't about to give up just because of a few setbacks.

People had told him several times to change his deck, but he didn't want to use the same powerful cards as everyone else: Dragons, Warriors, and Machines. Beast types were more his thing, although he had to admit, powerful Beast type Monsters _were_ hard to come by.

He'd been hoping to get into a dueling school, hone his skills, maybe even pick up a few rare cards to improve his deck.

"So much for that happening," he grumbled, running a hand through his long brown hair with a sigh.

Deciding that shouting at a piece of paper wasn't getting him anywhere, Tyson decided to go for a walk, maybe take a look at a few of the card shops and see if any of the better cards were within his price range.

He'd been walking along, lost in thought, for about ten minutes when a familiar annoying voice rang through the air.

"Well, if it isn't Odd-Eyed Ty! Hey how about a duel?"

"Not today, Dillon," Tyson sighed, immediately heading in the other direction. He'd tried being friendly to Dillon before, only to get three of his best cards stolen. He'd been giving the kid the cold shoulder for months, but he just wouldn't take the hint.

"Aw, come on Odd-Eye, don't be such a spoil sport!" Dillon begged, hurrying over to the teen's side.

Tyson groaned. He didn't know why everyone had to call him that. Sure, his eyes didn't match, but why was that such a big deal? As it was, his left eye was green, and his right eye was light purple. Ok…so maybe that wasn't exactly a _normal _color, but did that really give people the right to stare at him and call him odd-eyed and all of that? He certainly didn't think so, even if it was true.

"Just one duel!" the ten-year-old whined. "Come on! I'll even pay you for it!"

"What do I look like, a duel machine?" Tyson growled through clenched teeth. "You can't just pay someone to duel you, you know!"

Dillon looked shocked, before a cruel smile found its way to his lips. "Yeah well, you're just a stupid freaky-eyed weirdo, and nobody likes you anyway!" And with that, he stormed off, looking angrier than an Enraged Battle Ox.

Tyson sighed, wondering what the kid's problem was anyway. Heading over to the nearest card shop, he realized in dismay that the cards he wanted were _way_ out of his price range. _Some birthday this is_, he thought to himself, sitting on a park bench, chin resting on his hands. _Couldn't I get just ONE new card? Just ONE?_

"Looking for a new card?"

"Huh?" Tyson snapped out of his train of thought to see that a girl around his age had taken a seat next to him on the bench. He blinked, sure his eyes were playing tricks on him. The girl bore a striking resemblance to Dark Magician Girl: Same eyes, same features, although her hair was longer and was a shade of reddish brown rather than blond. If it weren't for the short blue skirt, pink tank top, and yellow flip-flops, Tyson wouldn't have been shocked if she'd pulled out her staff and started blasting things.

"Something the matter?" she asked, eyeing him with what appeared to be amusement.

Tyson could feel himself blushing. "Uh…no! Sorry, it's just…say has anyone ever told you that you look an awful lot like Dark Magician Girl?"

The girl sighed. "Only a million times! She's _always _been the popular one!" She shook her head before smiling warmly at him. "Call me Valerie," she laughed, reaching out to shake his hand.

He blinked, not sure what to make of her statement, but extended his hand anyway. "I'm Tyson."

The girl snorted, but quickly regained her composure. "Sorry! It's just that that name doesn't really suit you."

Tyson stared at the girl, not really sure whether she was trying to be friendly, or was about to make a joke about how his eyes didn't match. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "Well…I should probably get going-"

"WAIT!" Valerie shouted, causing the boy to jump in surprise. She turned to him, and placed a single card in his hand. "Here, take this. I've got a funny feeling that this card was meant for you."

He turned the card towards him, sighing as he read the name. "Catnipped Kitty?" He stared at the girl, giving her his best You-Have-Got-To-Be-Kidding look. "Isn't that card a little…wimpy?"

Valerie shook her head, eyes burning with passion. "There are no wimpy cards. Only wimpy Duelists." She stood up, stretching her arms over her head until her belly button was showing. "I'm not saying you'll win every duel. Heck, I'm not saying you'll win _any_. All I'm saying is that that card is _you_. Remember that." And with that, she dashed off, disappearing amongst a crowd of people who were out enjoying the sunshine.

"Oookayyy…" With a shrug, Tyson turned to look at the card in his hands, finding nothing particularly remarkable about it: Beast type, Earth attribute, zero attack, five-hundred defense, two star, Effect Monster. The card looked pretty wimpy, too: a purple kitty sitting adorably on a pink, lacey pillow, hearts floating around it as it playfully batted at what he could only assume was supposed to be cat nip…he paused, squinting at the card for a minute, then groaned. The cat had the same mismatched eyes he did.

_So this WAS just another stupid eye joke!_ He was about to toss the card away, but for some strange reason, hesitated. Shrugging, he shoved the card into his jeans pocket, then continued on his way.

After checking the prices of a few more cards, Tyson decided to head home and run through his card collection again to see if he had overlooked anything. He was just turning the corner to his house when a dude a couple of years older than him walked over, Duel Disk activating.

"Hey man, you duel?"

Tyson rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Yeah, but I kinda left my Duel Disk at home."

The teens face brightened. "Hey, no worries! You can borrow my old one! Here, catch!"

Tyson reached out and grabbed the Duel Disk as it was tossed to him, quickly strapping it on. It was a little beat up, but still seemed to be in good working condition.

Tyson drew his cards, mouth dropping open in shock as he stared at his hand:

Green Baboon, Defender of the Forrest  
>Monster Reborn<br>Catnipped Kitty  
>Catnipped Kitty<br>Catnipped Kitty

He knew he hadn't put Catnipped Kitty in his deck, let alone _three _of them. Wasn't there only one before? Shrugging, he figured he could at least special summon Green Baboon, Defender of the Forrest after one of the Catnipped Kittys was destroyed.

He drew his first card, Solemn Wishes, which was no more helpful, and began his turn.

"Ok, I'll set one card face down and summon Catnipped Kitty in defense mode!" he announced, as the kitty shimmered to life on the battle field, just as adorable as ever, and just as harmless. Once the cat was summoned, however, Tyson began to feel very strange, as if his body were somehow a million miles away. _Hey, what's going on? _he tried to cry out, but found himself unable to speak. He watched, feeling as if his soul was no longer connected to his body, as his opponent took his turn.

"Ok! I'll place two cards face down and summon Luster Dragon in attack mode!" A blue dragon appeared on the field, looking ready to eat the kitty for breakfast. "Go! Attack Catnipped Kitty!"

Luster Dragon  
>ATK: 1900<p>

Catnipped Kitty  
>DEF: 500<p>

The kitty disappeared instantly, just as Tyson had known it would, but he never got the chance to summon Green Baboon, Defender of the Forrest. The world began to swim, and he fell backwards, unconscious…

* * *

><p>He awoke sometime later to see several figures in white hovering over him; doctors he was assuming, whispering things, which he could barely make out.<p>

"This the one...?"

"Fainted…don't…why."

"Tyson Mathews…"

"The adopted kid…took him in, right?"

"Yeah…found…doorstep…Poor kid!"

"…parents been notified?"

"…on their way…sounded…"

Tyson let out a groan before drifting off once more.

The next time he awoke, his parents were standing over him, their expressions full of worry, concern, and…something else…was it guilt?

"Wha…what happened?" he managed to choke out, thankful that his voice was working again.

"You fainted, honey," his mother explained. "Don't you remember?"

He nodded, his head beginning to pound. He winced and held his temples. "Yeah, that I remember."

"The doctor says you just got overheated, and that you can come home tonight if you're feeling up to it," his father continued, looking relieved. "We've told you to mind the heat, you know you don't sweat well!"

"Yeah, I know," Tyson sighed, wishing that his father would spare him the lecture. He knew perfectly well that he didn't sweat like everyone else. If he got too hot he could get sick, or, in extreme cases, faint. Still…he'd never experienced anything like that before…

Deciding that he must have just been dizzy from the heat, Tyson decided that getting some rest was the best thing he could do right now. His parents agreed, and left his room to allow him to get some rest.

_Some birthday this turned out to be,_ he thought to himself as he drifted off to sleep, unaware of the figure watching him from just outside his window…

* * *

><p>As Tyson headed home later that night, he couldn't help but wonder exactly what the girl at the park had meant when she said that the card was meant for him, and why there were suddenly three of them. He looked at the three Catnipped Kittys in his hand, a feeling of unease coming over him. There was something strange about these cards…<p>

A bump in the road jolted Tyson out of his thoughts, alerting him that they were almost home.

As the car pulled up to the driveway, Tyson declined his mother's offer of dinner, not being very hungry. He headed wearily up to his room, flopping onto his bed, exhausted.

The dream came almost as soon as he fell asleep. He was standing in a gigantic forest, the ancient looking trees seeming to reach up towards the sky without end. The forest was filled with Beast type monsters of all shapes, sizes, and power levels. A Des Koala sat in a nearby tree eating leaves, its large bright eyes regarding him curiously. He took a step back, only to be greeted by the shrill yowl of a Rescue Cat, none too happy having its tail stepped on. His eyes widened as he stared passed the small cat at a large Big Tusked Mammoth, which was now making its way towards a pool of water.

_Ok, this is weird, _he thought uneasily, trying not to anger the group of animals that were now all staring at him.

He turned around slowly, so as not to upset the Beasts, but stopped dead in his tracks as he was confronted by three large ape like creatures.

Slowly, one of them stepped forward, gazing at Tyson as if it expected him to be here.

"We are the Guardians of the Forest," he explained, motioning to his companions. "Born here to protect the forest and all who live in it. I am Green Baboon, Defender of the Forest, but we have met before. This is Ancient Crimson Ape," he explained, motioning towards the ape on his right, who was leaning heavily on his staff, looking none too pleased, "and this is Yellow Baboon, Archer of the Forest," he continued, motioning towards the bright yellow baboon on his left, who currently had his bow drawn back, arrow carefully aimed straight at Tyson.

"Why am I here?" Tyson asked, cautiously eyeing Yellow Baboon, who looked like the type to shoot first, ask questions later. "And what do you mean we've met before?"

"That matters not now," Green Baboon replied, as if anticipating the question. "Right now, we have some important matters to discuss." Tyson flinched as the Green Baboon raised his staff high and banged it heavily against the forest floor, causing the forest to go eerily silent. "I have summoned you here for a reason; you are the last hope that we have. You are currently the only link the Beast type Monsters have to the human world." Tyson stared, confused, as a look of sadness came across the Guardians face. "We cannot go to the human world as you can, nor can any monster exist there outside of spirit form," Green Baboon continued, looking sorrowful. "However, there are a few who were sent there at a young age, and thus were able to establish and maintain borrowed human forms. However, it has come to our attention that these human forms are weakening, as we'd known they would eventually." He turned to Tyson, his eyes moist. "We just didn't think it would be this soon. I'm sorry Tyson. So very sorry."

"Sorry for what?" Tyson asked, not sure what the ape was talking about. "What does this have to do with me, anyway?" He sighed, wondering just when he was supposed to wake up from his crazy dream.

"I told you he doesn't remember!" Yellow Baboon growled, turning to face the Defender of the Forest, anger blazing in his eyes.

"I knew this was a foolish plan to begin with!" Ancient Crimson Ape croaked, glaring at Tyson like a cranky old man. "Honestly, sending children_, babies_ even-"

"He does remember," Green Baboon interrupted, an air of superiority in his voice, silencing the other two Guardians. "He just doesn't know it yet. And by the way," he turned his gaze to Ancient Crimson Ape, his eyes full of determination and resolve, "I'm not the only one who put my faith in the younger generation. Remember that."

The old ape grunted, but said no more. Yellow Baboon slowly lowered his bow, but didn't look too happy about it.

"I can offer you help in the form of signs, and I will speak with you when I can," Green Baboon continued, turning back to Tyson, who was beginning to feel more than a little uncomfortable in the Guardians presence. "Just be careful, put your trust only in a select few, and whatever you do, don't-"

Tyson never heard the last of the baboon's sentence, as the dream faded away, and he drifted into a deep and dreamless slumber, unaware that a certain card of his deck was letting off a soft glow…

* * *

><p>The next morning…<p>

Tyson awoke feeling rather groggy, sleep seeming very reluctant to leave him. He yawned, stretched, then realized that he had fallen asleep in his clothes the night before.

With a sigh, he headed over to his dresser, grabbed the first set of clothes he could find, and proceeded to get dressed, not caring that his socks didn't match.

_What a crazy dream, _he thought to himself as he ran a brush through his hair. _I gotta give dueling a rest for a bit, it's making me crazy! _He turned to his deck, shrugged, and slipped it into its deck case attached to his belt. _Aw well, I tried! _

Walking over to the mirror on his dresser to make sure he hadn't put his shirt on inside out or anything, which he'd done on more than one occasion, something happened to catch his eye. Pausing, he stared hard at his ears, which were just barely visible beneath his hair, sure that there was something…off.

Pulling his hair back, Tyson frowned as he noticed that the tips of his ears seemed to have developed a slight point to them.

_Man, that dream must really be getting to me, I'm starting to see things! _he laughed, pushing his hair back to its original position and heading down stairs.

Elsewhere, in another world, Green Baboon, Defender of the Forest let out a heavy sigh.

"It's starting."

* * *

><p>Authors notes: Well, that's chapter one, hope everybody enjoyed it! For those of you who were hoping for an <em>actual <em>duel, don't worry, next chapter we get to see Tyson duel! Will he win? I guess you'll just have to wait and find out! :)


	2. It's Time To Duel!

Chapter 2: It's Time To Duel!

Tyson stood at the top of the stairs, mouth twisted open in a silent scream of terror. The Beast stood at the bottom of the stairs, hungrily eyeing him as if he were a piece of meat. It let out a low growl, and before Tyson even had time to run, it lunged.

"Ahh! Get it off of me!" he cried out, as the savage animal sank its bloodthirsty fangs into his ankle.

"Oh for heaven's sake, Tyson! It's only Muffin!" his Aunt Mildred laughed, picking up the snarling toy poodle and cuddling it in her arms like a baby.

Tyson groaned. He had no idea why Muffin hated him so much. Muffin was usually friendly to everyone, even the mailman. The only things he didn't like were cats, and, for whatever reason, Tyson.

The light brown poodle in his aunt's arms stared at him, then let out a low menacing growl. Tyson shrank back, hoping that his aunt wouldn't put the dog down.

"Muffin! Be a good boy!" Aunt Mildred scolded, patting the dog's head. Muffin yapped and wagged his tail, then turned to Tyson as if to say, "I'll get you later." She put him down, and he curled up in a corner of the kitchen to take a nap, much to the teen's relief. "Here Tyson! I saw these were being sold at a real bargain and I thought of you! Besides they're just adorable!" she gushed, handing three identical cards to her nephew.

"Mad Dog of Darkness?" he asked in disbelief, staring at the cards.

"Aren't they precious!" his aunt squealed, making Tyson wonder if she were blind.

The card wasn't exactly what he would call "cute." To be honest, it looked downright vicious: its body hunched over, saliva dripping from its jaws, eyes glowing an evil red. It was kinda giving him the creeps; it reminded him of Muffin, including the letter "M" on its collar. An evil, demented Muffin…

"Aren't you going to thank your aunt?" his mother asked, snapping him out of his thoughts.

"Thanks Aunt Millie," Tyson muttered, not really sure what to say. "They look…great."

"Oh Ty! I'm so happy you like them!" Aunt Mildred cried, wrapping him in a hug so tight he though his spine would snap in two. She stood up, carefully patting her short brown curls into place. Now, why don't you go test them out? Your mother and I have to work on your cake and we want it to be a surprise! Oh! But first you must join us for breakfast!"

At the sound of the word "breakfast" Muffin immediately popped his head up, caught sight of Tyson, and growled.

"N-no, that's ok," Tyson sputtered, quickly making his way towards the back door. "I'll just grab something on my way! Uh…I just can't wait to try out Crazy Dog of Evil!"

"Mad Dog of Darkness," his Aunt corrected with a laugh, as Muffin once again bit into his leg.

_Right, that's Muffin,_ Tyson sighed, heading out the door and closing it before the poodle could attack again.

* * *

><p>Tyson, duel disk in hand, headed down the street, only to be greeted by a now all too familiar voice.<p>

"Hey Odd-Eyed Ty!"

Tyson groaned, turning to see Dillon running towards him enthusiastically.  
>"I told you already, I'm not-"<p>

"Duel me or I'm telling Mom how you've been bullying me!" the ten-year-old threatened, eyes narrowed. "I'll even tell her how you stole those cards from me!"

"_What?_ Those were _my _cards! You stole them from me first!"  
>Dillon turned to Tyson, a triumphant grin plastered on his face. "Yeah, well who do you think she's gonna believe? Her wonderful, perfect son, or some freaky eyed weirdo?"<p>

Tyson gritted his teeth, then activated his duel disk. At the very least, he could teach the kid a lesson in manners by beating him in a duel. Drawing five cards, he immediately groaned as he saw his starting hand:

Catnipped Kitty  
>Catnipped Kitty<br>Catnipped Kitty  
>Draining Shield<br>Mad Dog of Darkness

_Great, I drew the evil Muffin_, Tyson thought with a sigh as he drew his first card, Smashing Ground. As much as he hated the demented Muffin, he didn't have much of a choice but to summon it. The dog shimmered to life on the field, saliva dripping from its jaws. It turned its head, caught sight of Tyson, and growled. _Just great, even the card Muffin hates me, _he thought with a groan. Setting one card face down, he ended his turn.

"Hey, why don't we make a bet?" Dillon challenged, grinning an evil grin. "If I win, I get the most powerful monster in your deck, if you win, you get to _keep _the strongest monster in your deck!"

"What do I look like, an idiot? Besides, I wouldn't wager my cards, even if you weren't a brat!"

Dillon's face flushed red with anger. "Shut up you odd-eyed freak!" he snapped, an evil grin forming on his face. "Besides, if you don't take the bet, I'll tell my mom that you hit me!"

"I never touched you!" Tyson growled through clenched teeth, patience growing thin.

"But she doesn't know that," Dillon replied, looking victorious.

"Fine! Just take your turn!" Tyson growled, confident that he could at least beat some snott-nosed brat.

"Ok, I'll draw," Dillon began, drawing three cards.

"Hey, you can't do that! It's one card per turn!"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Dillon shrugged, playing innocent. "I only drew one card, same as you. If you're gonna cheat, I guess that means I win!" Struggling to keep his anger in check, Tyson motioned for Dillon to finish his move. "Ok! I summon Zombyra the Dark in attack mode! Attack Mad Dog of Darkness!"

Zombyra the Dark  
>ATK: 2100<p>

Mad Dog of Darkness  
>ATK: 1900<p>

"I activate my facedown card, Draining Shield!" Tyson announced, as a shield popped up in front of Mad Dog of Darkness, blocking Zombyra the Dark's punch. The shield glowed blue as the energy of the attack was absorbed, then sent racing towards Tyson, where it hit his Duel Disk, giving a large boost to his life points.

Dillon's mouth dropped open in disbelief as his opponent's life points went from 8000 to 10,100. "No fair! You cheater!" he shouted, stomping his foot in anger.

"Draining Shield negates one of your monsters attacks and increases my life points by its attack points," Tyson explained with a sigh, beginning to wonder if he should have just risked being mauled to death by Muffin. He paused as he saw Mad Dog of Darkness glancing back at him, wagging its stubby tail and looking extremely grateful. "You're welcome!" Tyson laughed, beginning to think that maybe the crazy dog wasn't so bad after all. _Just great, I'm talking to a card. _Shaking his head and drawing his next card, Negate Attack, he set it face down, and sighed. _I can't summon Catnipped Kitty, it'll get destroyed. _For some reason, a cold chill ran down his spine at the thought of the cat being destroyed. "I end my turn there."

"Ok," Dillon laughed, drawing two cards. "I'll place four cards face down and summon Battle Ox in attack mode!" The ax wielding Minotaur appeared on the field, ax at the ready, an angry look in its eyes. "Ok Zombyra the Dark, attack Mad Dog!"

"I'll activate Negate Attack!" Tyson announced, as the card on his side of the field flipped face up. Just as Zombyra was about to punch the berserk canine, the attack was swallowed up by a wormhole, making the move useless.

"Lucky shot," Dillon grumbled as his monster returned to its position. "You can't stall forever!"

"I don't have to!" Tyson replied with a smile, drawing his next card, Bazoo the Soul Eater. "Each time Zombyra the Dark attacks, he loses 200 attack points!" Dillon stared at his monster in shock, cringing, as he knew what was about to happen. "Ok, Mad Dog of Darkness, attack Zombyra!" The dog jumped to attention, dashing towards Dillon's monster, fangs bared, eyes blazing a fiery red. It lunged for the opponent's throat, shaking its head back and forth until the monster disappeared in a flash of light.

Tyson: 10,100

Dillon: 7800

"Fine, I'm done playing!" Dillon growled, sounding like a whiney little kid. Drawing a card, finally abiding by the rules, at the moment, Dillon gave Tyson a glare that said, "You asked for it" and let out a cruel sounding laugh. "First, I play Meteor of Destruction!" Tyson flinched as meteors rained down from the sky, although he knew that they couldn't possibly hurt him, cutting his life points by 1000 points. "Next, I'll activate Raigeki!" Tyson watched helplessly as a powerful bolt of lightning struck Mad Dog of Darkness, feeling as though he had let it down. The dog howled before disappearing in a flash of light. Dillon just smiled. "Then I activate Cost Down, discarding one card from my hand, so that I can summon Summoned Skull without tribute! Attack!"

The skeletal fiend raised its wicked claws and released a bolt of lightning at Tyson, taking a large chunk from his life points.

Tyson: 6600

Dillon: 7800

Gritting his teeth, Tyson drew a card, praying that it would be something good, and smiling when he saw it was Cat's Ear Tribe. "I summon Cat's Ear Tribe in attack mode!"

Dillon blinked as he saw the three feline warriors appear on the field: one rolling on the ground playfully, one lounging, looking bored, and the last, the leader, looking poised for battle, a tiny dagger gripped in his paw. Together, they had a whopping attack of 200.

"That's it?" Dillon laughed, tears in his eyes. "_That's _the best you could do? Jeez Odd-Eye, no wonder you always lose!"

"Just make your move," Tyson replied calmly, knowing that he could usually count on his opponents to underestimate Cat's Ear Tribe.

"Fine! Prepare to lose!" Dillon laughed, drawing two cards. "Summoned Skull, attack Cat's Ear Tribe!" Tyson smiled as Cat's Ear Tribe readied their weapons and met Summoned Skull's attack head on. In a flash of lightning, both monsters shimmered with light and disappeared. "What happened?" Dillon asked, eyes wide with shock.

"A monster attacking Cat's Ear Tribe has its attack reduced to 200," Tyson explained, regarding his opponent with a pleased smile. "They destroyed each other."

Dillon clenched his fists. "Fine! Battle Ox, attack!"

Tyson's smile faded as the beast swung its mighty ax, cutting through his life points like butter.

Tyson: 4900

Dillon: 7800

Gritting his teeth, Tyson drew his card, Ring of Destruction, and summoned Bazoo the Soul Eater in attack mode. The purple baboon like creature grinned, rubbing its hands together hungrily.

"Ok, I'll activate Bazoo's effect, removing two monsters from play, to increase his attack by 300 for each monster removed!" Orbs of light flew from Tyson's graveyard over to Bazoo, who began munching on them greedily.

"What the heck?" Dillon asked, looking downright confused.

"Now attack!" Finishing its meal, Bazoo looked up and charged towards Battle Ox, taking it out with one heavy swing of its arm.

Bazoo the Soul Eater:  
>ATK: 1600- 2200<p>

Battle Ox:  
>ATK: 1700<p>

Tyson: 4900

Dillon: 7300

Dillon scowled, drawing six cards in desperation, then smiled, a cold, cruel smile, and made his move. "All right, I summon Dark Blade in attack mode-hey wait, why didn't Bazoo's attack go back down?" he asked, pointing an accusing finger at Tyson.

"His attack goes back down at the beginning of my next turn," Tyson sighed, beginning to feel like an elementary school teacher.

"Fine! I end my turn!" Dillon spat, turning his head away from his opponent.

Sighing, Tyson drew his card, Green Baboon, Defender of the Forrest. _Déjà vu_, he thought as he switched Bazoo the Soul Eater to defense mode.

Looking victorious, Dillon drew a card, smiling triumphantly. "Ok, I activate Polymerization to fuse my Cave Dragon with my Lesser Fiend to summon Fiend Skull Dragon!" Tyson watched as the two monsters swirled and melded together, forming a large four-armed dragon, which eyed him evilly, smoke coming out of its nostrils. "Attack Bazoo!"

The dragon reared back its head and exhaled a huge blast of wicked black fire at the baboon creature, incinerating it.

Tyson smiled. "Since you destroyed a Beast type monster, I can pay 1000 life points to special summon Green Baboon, Defender of the Forrest from my hand!" The familiar figure of the forests protector appeared on the field, club in hand. After drawing Heart of Clear Water, Tyson commanded the Guardian to attack the mighty dragon. The beast took down the creature with one swing of his powerful club.

Green Baboon, Defender of the Forest  
>ATK: 2600<p>

Fiend Skull Dragon  
>ATK: 2000<p>

Tyson: 3900

Dillon: 6700

Looking at the Catnipped Kitties in his hand, a plan began to take shape. "Ok, I'll summon Catnipped Kitty in defense mode and equip it with Heart of Clear Water!" Tyson announced, as the small purple kitten appeared on the field, looking tiny next to the large baboon. A single raindrop fell from the sky, hitting Catnipped Kitty on the nose, and bathing it in an orange glow. Tyson once again felt the strange sensation of being detached from his body, which he was beginning to wonder if it wasn't the heat after all, but it was less intense this time.

Dillon snickered at the sight of the adorable kitty, and drew a card. "Hey, it looks like you Odd-Eye!" he laughed, pointing at the feline, which puffed up its tail in response. "I summon Mystical Elf in defense mode!" The delicate elf materialized on the field, looking calm despite her inevitable destruction.

Tyson felt himself draw a card, Gaia Power, still wondering what was going on. "I activate the field spell, Gaia Power!" Tyson announced, his voice sounding strangely distant to him. "Then, I'll summon another Catnipped Kitty in attack mode." As the second kitty appeared, the strange feeling intensified, making the duel seem to be taking place a million miles away. Tyson's heart began to beat faster as he found himself in a forest, then slowed as he realized that that was just the effect of Gaia Power. "I switch my first Catnipped Kitty to attack mode and activate its effect to make your monsters defense zero!" Catnipped Kitty gave its best cute face, hearts dancing around it. Mystical Elf's eyes lit up as she gazed fondly at the adorable creature. "Now Kitty, attack!" The cat arched its back and leaped at the opponent, scratching and hissing until the opponent vanished in a flash of light. "Now, Catnipped Kitty and Green Baboon, Defender of the Forest, attack his life points directly!"

The pair of monsters rushed Dillon, striking with tremendous force.

Tyson: 3900

Dillon: 3100

Dillon's face turned red with embarrassment and anger, unable to believe that a tiny cat had cost him so many life points. Taking his Draw Phase, Dillon stared at Tyson with pure hatred. "Why? Why is it that you always give me so much trouble with such weak monsters?"

_You really need to stop cheating and play by the rules like everyone else! _Tyson tried to retort, but, like the day before, found that his voice wasn't working at the moment. _What in the world is going on here? There's no way that this is heat stroke! _

"Not gonna answer me, huh? Fine! I activate Tribute to the Doomed! By discarding one card from my hand, I can destroy your Green Baboon, Defender of the Forest!" A mummy's bandages wrapped their way around Green Baboon, then a pair of hands shot up from the earth, dragging him to the depths below.

Tyson drew his card, United We Stand, and smiled. "I'll start off by summoning Catnipped Kitty in attack mode, then I'll equip my Catnipped Kitty with United We Stand!" The three kitties joined paws, and as the strange out of body sensation strengthened, Tyson felt as if he was right there, holding hands with them. Dillon's eyes widened as one of the Catnipped Kitty's attack rose to 2900. "Attack!" Tyson managed to say, the three adorable felines charging paw in paw, jumping on top of Dillon, scratching and biting, as his life points were depleted.

Tyson: 3900

Dillon: 0

As the Duel Disks deactivated, and Tyson felt the out of body experience come to an end, he saw Dillon staring at him, face red with fury.

"You cheated! You had to have cheated! I-"

"Don't give me that, you little brat," Tyson growled, looking the ten year old straight in the eye. "You cheated the whole duel! And I don't care what you tell your mother!"

Dillon stared wide-eyed at the furious teenager in front of him, mouth open in shock. He'd never seen Tyson this angry before, it just wasn't like him. "Uhh…I better go now," he squeaked, dashing down the street like a mouse fleeing from an angry cat.

Sighing, Tyson turned to head back to his house, feeling strangely drained after that last duel. _What in the world is up with me lately? _he wondered, shaking his head. _Aw well, at least I taught that brat a lesson! _

* * *

><p>Author's Notes: Ok, here we have my first attempt at a duel, which may or may not be that great. As for why I went with 8000 Life Points instead of 4000, that is intending to follow the pattern of Life Point increase to accommodate more and more powerful monsters, spells, and traps. With many monsters reaching the 3000 attack mark or more, I'm surprised the series hasn't done this yet.<p>

Also, yeah I know it wasn't _technically _a real duel, as Dillon cheats, but hopefully everybody enjoyed it just the same. There probably won't be too many chapters like this, as I'm sure it would get repetitive after a while. _Soul Card _is probably going to focus more on plot than the duels themselves, just so everybody knows what to expect.

Anyway, thanks for reading and feel free to review! Any suggestions, including how I can improve the next _real _duel, are appreciated! :)


	3. Signs of Things to Come

Chapter 3: Signs of Things to Come

Later that night, Tyson sat in his room, going over the gifts he had received: a CD player, some new cards, several pairs of jeans, some gift cards and birthday money, a stomach ache from eating too much cake, and, best of all, a Beast King Barbaros.

_That'll be perfect for my deck! _Tyson realized, quickly adding in the powerful Beast-Warrior. _And tomorrow, I'll see about giving this deck a tune up! _

Smiling to himself, Tyson drifted off into a deep and comfortable slumber…

* * *

><p><em>Meanwhile…<em>

"How long does he have?" Yellow Baboon asked, looking out at the cloud filled sky.

"That's unclear right now," Green Baboon replied with a heavy sigh, turning to his old friend. "Could be months, could be a matter of days. We'll just have to wait and see how quickly his transformation progresses and make our call from there. If he starts changing too quickly, we may have to take action…"

Ancient Crimson Ape sighed, shaking his head. "This plan is doomed to failure. Several of the others have already-"

"Don't talk like that!" Yellow Baboon snapped, fingering the bow at his side. "There's still time for us to-"

"What _can _we do?" the old ape snapped, turning to Yellow Baboon with a scowl on his face. "We can't go to the human world, and he's convinced we are no more than a dream! The boy's a lost cause!"

Green Baboon sighed, glancing up at the stars thoughtfully. "A storm is on its way," he casually pointed out, causing his companions to cease their bickering. "It reminds me of that night so many years ago…" His companions were silent, remembering that fateful day with a mixture of emotions. "These are dark times, and if we start doubting ourselves now, then we might as well give up all together. As long as there is hope, I for one refuse to quit."

Yellow Baboon and Ancient Crimson Ape nodded, looking up at the sky with their lifelong friend. In the distance, there was the sound of a cat singing.

Be strong my son,  
>I need you now.<br>Soon, your journey shall begin.  
>Don't be afraid,<br>I love you dear one.  
>This will end, though I know not how.<br>When the time comes, don't hesitate,  
>to unleash the Beast within.<p>

* * *

><p>Tyson awoke with a start the next morning, his heart pounding, though he had no clue why. Seeing that he was still safe and sound in his own bed, he let out a sigh and shrugged off the feeling of unease that clung to him for no discernable reason.<p>

_That's it, no more sugar before bed,_ he thought to himself, as he forced his body into a sitting position. His body didn't seem to want to cooperate with him this morning, and he had to fight the urge to simply curl up in bed and go back to sleep. _Maybe some tuna will perk me up,_ he considered, licking his lips at the thought of the salty tang of the fish. _Whoa, where'd that come from? _

Shrugging, he headed into his bathroom, tossed his nightshirt and boxers in the dirty clothes hamper, and began running himself a nice hot shower. _This outta wake me up, _he sighed, enjoying the heat of the shower as the water cascaded down on him. Taking a bottle of shampoo, he began lathering it into his hair, pausing as his hands came in contact with something. _What the…? _He ran his fingers along the protrusions, making their way to the tips. His ears seemed pointier than they should have been, and felt like they were farther up his head than normal.

Finishing his shower as quickly as he could, Tyson got out and toweled off, pausing to catch a glimpse of his reflection in the mirror. Wiping the steam from the glass, Tyson squinted hard at his head, finding that the tips of his ears were just barely poking out of his hair. Pushing his hair back, Tyson saw that they _did _look pointier than normal, and his ears seemed to have climbed a little ways up his head.

Ok…that's weird, he pondered, running his fingers over the tips of his ears. Yeah, definitely no more sugar before bed!

Heading out of the bathroom, Tyson got dressed, grabbed his deck and Duel Disk, and headed downstairs.

"Good morning Ty!" his mother greeted him, dishing some pancakes onto a plate for him. She paused, a frown forming on her face. "What's wrong? Not sleep well?"

"I'm fine," Tyson muttered, taking his seat at the table. Spotting the plate of pancakes in front of him, Tyson began to feel sick. "Uhh…I think I'll just have cereal," he groaned, pushing the food away from him.

"Instead of pancakes?" his mother asked, frowning. "Ty, are you feeling alright?"

"Fine," he grunted, pulling away as she tried to feel his forehead. "I just ate too much cake last night, that's all."

His mother stared at him thoughtfully for a moment, something in her eyes that Tyson couldn't read. She bit her lip before shrugging, all sunshine and butterflies once again.

"All right Ty, I'll put these in the fridge, and you can eat them when your stomach feels up to it." She paused, brushing aside strands of his hair. "You know, you really should get this cut-"

"It's fine Mom, I like it that way!" he snapped, pulling away from his mother's touch.

She sighed and continued putting away the pancakes, a worried frown on her face. "You'd tell me if anything was wrong, wouldn't you Ty?"

"Yeah Mom, I've just had a rough morning that's all," Tyson explained, feeling guilty for snapping at his mother who had always been so kind to him.

His mother smiled, pouring the milk onto his cereal. "I know you would. How about we go see a movie, or go to the zoo sweetie?" his mother suggested, sounding somewhat guilty. "It will give us some family bonding time!"

"No, I kind of just want to stay at home today, maybe buy a couple cards from the shops," Tyson declined, wondering why his mother was being so kind.

"Oh! I can give you some spending money," his mother offered.

"No, I have my own from my birthday. I couldn't ask for more, that wouldn't be fair," Tyson replied, not wanting to burden his mother and also partly because he was getting kind of being creeped out by his mother being so super nice this morning.

Tyson looked down at his cereal and began to consider lapping the milk up from the bowl… _No, that's something a cat would do_! Tyson thought to himself, wondering what in the world was up with him this morning.

Finishing his breakfast, Tyson headed over to one of the local card shops, browsing the display cases, eyes peeled for anything that could improve his deck.

"Looking for new cards again?" a voice asked from behind him, causing him to jump. He turned around and saw the girl from the park, Valerie, smiling at him and looking like she was trying not to laugh.

"Yeah," he replied uncertainly, eyeing the girl suspiciously. Something about her made him uneasy. "I was thinking of getting a Behemoth, the King of All Animals or a Mosaic Manticore."

"I'd say this card is a little more your style," Valerie laughed, pointing towards a familiar looking card.

_That's one of the cards from my dream! _Tyson realized as he recognized the card as Ancient Crimson Ape. "Isn't it part of a set?" he asked, turning to Valerie for confirmation.

She nodded, her eyes dancing as if she knew more than she was telling. "The Guardians of the Forest. There's three of them: Green Baboon, Defender of the Forest; Yellow Baboon, Archer of the Forest; and Ancient Crimson Ape. You already have Green Baboon, right?"

_How could she possibly know that? _Tyson wondered, beginning to feel uncomfortable. "Yeah," he agreed, never taking his eyes off of her. "Why?"

"So, you might wanna think about collecting all three. The shop has Ancient Crimson Ape, but Yellow Baboon's missing. It'd be worth your while, they complement each other really well."

Tyson turned back to the card thoughtfully. It _would _be a good card to add to his deck. "Ok, I'll take-huh?" He turned to look at the girl next to him, but Valerie had already vanished. Shrugging, he turned back to the clerk, who handed him his new card. "Say, you wouldn't happen to have Yellow Baboon, Archer of the Forest by any chance, would you?" Tyson asked as he paid for the card.

The clerk shook his head. "Sorry, but no. Hey don't worry," he added as he noticed Tyson's face fall, "we get new cards in here all the time. If you keep checking in, chances are, we'll have it eventually."

Tyson's expression instantly brightened. "Great! Thanks a lot!" With a smile on his face, Tyson turned to head out the door, already making plans to return to the shop the following day.

He'd been walking aimlessly for about five minutes when a familiar face popped out of nowhere, startling him so much he nearly toppled over.

"So you take my advice Tyson?" Valerie asked, giggling as the boy shot her an irritated glare.

"Are you following me?" he asked, ignoring her question.

"Maybe," she replied with a shrug, a teasing look in her eyes. "Maybe not."

"Which is it?" he asked, turning to face her, anger clearly visible on his face. "What is it you want anyway? It seems like ever since you gave me that stupid Catnipped Kitty card, weird things have been happening!"

"What kind of things?" Valerie asked, looking interested.

"Nothing, forget it!" Tyson snapped, turning away from her. He wasn't even sure what was going on himself; there was no way he was going to talk about it with a complete stranger!

Her gaze softened, becoming sympathetic. With a sigh, she walked over and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, which he pushed away. "Look, I know this doesn't make sense now, but that Catnipped Kitty will soon become more important to you than all the cards in your deck."

Tyson turned towards Valerie, his eyes narrowed suspiciously. "What does that mean?" he asked, only to have her shake her head and laugh.

"You'll find out!" she called back to him, as she took off running and he lost sight of her as she turned the corner.

_What is with that girl?_ Tyson wondered, staring off in the direction Valerie had gone. Shrugging, Tyson headed up to the town square where many Duelists would surely be testing out their skills. He was lost in his own thoughts, excited to test out Ancient Crimson Ape, when a low growl sent a chill down his spine.

Turning around slowly, he came face to face with a huge Doberman, saliva dripping from its mouth, jaws pulled back into a snarl.

"Nice doggy," Tyson muttered nervously, holding up his hands and taking a step back. The dog growled at him, looking ready to go for the throat. "Nice doggy…"

"Hey, Odd-Eye! Like my new dog?" Tyson turned to see Dillon walk up to the monster, looking very smug. "I just got him, names Killer." Tyson gulped as he heard this, taking another nervous step backwards. Dillon snickered. "Oh, come on Odd-Eye! He just wants to play with you!" the ten year old laughed, then pointed at Tyson. "Go play boy!"

Tyson didn't hesitate and was soon running through the streets, a vicious dog right on his heels. He yelped in terror as the animal sank its fangs into his pant leg, ripping off a piece of his jeans, then doubled his pace. As he rounded the corner, he could hear the beast's claws scraping against the pavement. His heart pounded in his chest like a jackhammer, adrenaline coarsening through his veins, giving him the strength to run faster than he'd ever run before.

_Almost there,_ he thought to himself as he could just make out his house at the end of the block.

Putting on a burst of speed, Tyson dashed down the street towards his house, slamming the door shut just as the dog was about to pounce on him. He could hear the animal's claws scratching at the door, trying in vain to get to him. Taking several deep breaths in an attempt to return his heart rate to normal, he looked up to see his mother sitting at the kitchen table, cup of tea nearby, smiling at him.

"Hi Ty, how was your day?" she asked, not noticing his chewed up pant leg.

"Don't ask," he grumbled, as he headed up to his room to get a new pair of jeans.

"Oh, Ty! There really is something I need to tell you!" his mother called after him.

"Not now," he groaned, walking into his room and shutting the door. Turning around, his mouth opened in a silent scream of shock and terror as he caught sight of The Beast lying on top of his bed. Muffin looked up, spotted Tyson, and let out a long, low growl before jumping off the bed and charging towards the teen, fangs bared.

"Ahhh!" Tyson screamed, running out the door and slamming it shut. "Mom! What's Muffin doing here?" he cried, his body still shaking from the shock of nearly being killed twice in one day. Why did dogs hate him so much?

"Oh, your Aunt Mildred's going on vacation and she didn't want to put Muffin in a kennel, so I said we'd watch him!" his mother called back, sounding as if she hadn't just sentenced her only son to an early death. "Don't worry, it's only for a week!"

"A _week_?" Tyson squeaked, unable to believe he'd heard his mother correctly. "I'm supposed to spend a _whole week _with that…that… _THING_?"

"Now Ty," his mother scolded, "your aunt loves Muffin very much and she's counting on us to take good care of him! Besides, the only reason he growls at you is because you're afraid. Dogs can smell fear, you know!"

_Of course I'm afraid!_ Tyson thought to himself as he heard Muffin's growl from behind the closed door. _That little monster always tries to kill me! _

Realizing that he wasn't going to be able to talk his mother out of it, Tyson headed downstairs to watch some TV, hoping to put the thought of a week with The Beast out of his mind.

When his father got home from work, Tyson decided to try talking to him about it.

"And I'll mow the lawn and take out the garbage for a month!" he begged, down on his hands and knees. "Just please, please, PLEASE don't make me spend the week with that monster!"

"The answer is _no _Tyson," his father sighed, glancing up from his crossword puzzle. "Hmm…what's a six letter word for 'May be fatal'?"

"Muffin!" Tyson screamed, throwing his arms in the air. "Please Dad, you can't-"

"Deadly!" his father exclaimed, scribbling in the answer enthusiastically, completely oblivious to Tyson.

"Da-ad!" Tyson moaned, finally catching his father's attention.

Mr. Mathews sighed and put down his crossword before turning to his son, a frown on his face. "Honestly Tyson, how can you _possibly_ be afraid of Muffin? He's a _toy poodle_ for Pete's sake!" The man shook his head, giving his son the My-Word-is-Final look. "This'll be good for you Tyson. You'll see. With any luck, you and Muffin will be best friends by the end of the week. Now, what's a six letter word for 'No hope'?"

"Doomed," Tyson said quietly, eyes wide with fear.

"Ah, that's it!" his father laughed, quickly jotting down the answer. "Thanks Tyson!"

Feeling defeated, Tyson had nothing to do but hang around moodily until dinner, which ended in Muffin eating all the meatballs from his spaghetti when no one was looking.

_Man,_ Tyson thought to himself as he ate his now spaghetti without meatballs, _this is gonna be a __**long **__week._

* * *

><p>The week went, as Tyson had expected, terribly. Muffin growled at him whenever he saw him, ate off his plate when no one was looking, and tried to bite him every chance he got, often times succeeding.<p>

The only thing that bothered him more than Muffin was the fact that his ears seemed to be changing shape, looking pointier and farther up his head by the day. Fortunately, his long hair allowed this to escape the notice of his family members.

_Are they swelling?_ he wondered as he stared at them in the mirror, running his fingers over the tips. _Maybe I'm allergic to something, _he thought, recalling how his cousin Freddy's face swelled up like a balloon whenever he ate peanuts. _Maybe I'm allergic to Muffin, _he considered, recalling how he'd started noticing this the same day his aunt had brought the dog over. He couldn't help laughing at the thought of Muffin being sent to a kennel for the sake of his health.

Still, he'd always heard animal allergies were characterized by sneezing, and perhaps difficulty breathing, not swelling of the ears. His ears didn't hurt or feel plugged up, either. In fact, he felt fine, not the least bit sick, although his ears _were_ starting to look a little funny.

_What's wrong with me? _he wondered, checking to make sure that his ears weren't too noticeable beneath his hair.

"Ty! Dinner!" his mother called from downstairs, causing Tyson to shudder.

_Just great, another meal that'll be ruined by The Beast,_ Tyson thought with a sigh, imagining Muffin already at his plate eating his food.

Checking his ears in the mirror one last time, and deciding that his hair covered them just well enough, Tyson reluctantly made his way downstairs.

By the time he got there, Muffin had already eaten two of his three hotdogs.

* * *

><p>Author's notes: Well, that's chapter three! It's pretty much a lead in to later chapters, with of few hints at future events. The plot will pick up next chapter, and we'll <em>finally <em>find out what's happening to Tyson.

**Card corner:** Here are some major cards that were mentioned last chapter!

**Catnipped Kitty:** Tyson's signature card, its effect allows it to make the Defense of one of your opponent's monsters zero until the end of the turn. Also, if you control another Beast type monster, this card can't be attacked! A great combo to use is to have more than one Kitty on the field at a time.

Stars: 2  
>Type: Beast<br>Attribute: Earth  
>ATK: 0<br>DEF: 500

**Green Baboon, Defender of the Forest:** If one of your Beast type monsters is destroyed, you can special summon this card by paying 1000 life points. This allows you to summon it from your hand OR graveyard, making it very useful in a Beast Deck.

Stars: 7  
>Type: Beast<br>Attribute: Earth  
>ATK: 2600<br>DEF: 1800

**Gaia Power:** A field spell that increases the Attack of all Earth monsters by 500 points, and decreases their Defense by 400 points. Great to have considering the majority of Beast types are also Earth monsters.

**Heart of Clear Water: **An equip spell, it can only be equipped to a monster with less than 1300 Attack points. The monster then is not destroyed by battle, or by the effects of cards that specifically designate a target. Great for protecting your weaker monsters.

**United We Stand: **An equip spell card that increases the equipped monsters Attack by 800 points for each monster you have on the field (including the equipped monster). With a lot of monsters on the field, this can lead very easily to a colossal Attack boost.


	4. The Cat's Out of the Bag

Chapter 4: The Cat's Out of the Bag

Tyson awoke the next morning, feeling strangely alert and energized. Glancing at the digital clock on his nightstand, which read 12:00, he quickly climbed out of bed, wondering how he could have slept so late, and why no one had bothered to awaken him. Something seemed…different this morning, but he just couldn't put his finger on what it was.

Shrugging, he headed over to his dresser, pausing as he happened to catch a quick glimpse of his reflection in the mirror, and was met with the shock of his life.

"AHHHHHHHH!" he screamed, a sound so loud he was sure everyone in the house would hear it. He froze, praying that his parents wouldn't come rushing up the stairs to his room, then slowly relaxed as he remembered that his father would be at work by now, and his mother would be meeting Aunt Millie at the airport with Muffin.

Turning back to the mirror, he stared in shock and disbelief at the pair of purple cat ears that now stood up from the top of his head, hoping with all his might that they weren't real. Gently reaching up and taking one of the ears between his fingers, he let out a gasp of shock as he realized that he could feel his touch from the ear. He then spent what must have been the next five minutes fiddling with the pair of cat ears atop his head, as if to convince himself that it wasn't happening, yet he knew in his heart that it was, indeed, happening.

"What the heck is going on?" he wondered, flopping onto his bed and curling up into a ball. This wasn't happening. It _couldn't _be happening. Yet still, something inside of him insisted that it was. Rolling onto his back, he once again examined his new furry cat ears, wondering what he was supposed to do about them. _Sure, my ears have looked a little funny lately, but this…this is just…insane!_

Walking back over to his dresser mirror, he took another look at his reflection, hoping for a brief moment that he'd imagined the whole thing, and that the ears had disappeared from the top of his head. They hadn't, of course, but something did happen to catch his attention. Eyes widening, he rushed over to his dresser, pulled out the three Catnipped Kitty cards, and headed back to the mirror, mouth hanging open in disbelief. As he stared hard at his reflection and the cards in his hand, he finally came to a startling conclusion: those weren't just _any _cat ears atop his head. They were Catnipped Kitty ears.

_So this is what Valerie meant? _he wondered, as he stared at his reflection in horror. Then an even more terrifying thought entered his mind, the events of his dream several nights ago coming back to him all at once.

"_I have summoned you here for a reason; you are the last hope that we have. You are currently the only link the Beast type Monsters have to the human world. We cannot go to the human world as you can, nor can any monster exist there outside of spirit form. However, there are a few who were sent there at a young age, and thus were able to establish and maintain borrowed human forms. However, it has come to our attention that these human forms are weakening, as we'd known they would eventually. We just didn't think it would be this soon. I'm sorry Tyson. So very sorry."_

"I…I'm…not human?" Tyson whispered, body shaking with fear. Feeling dizzy, he headed back over to his bed and lay there for a while, trying to let the information sink in. He wasn't sure how long he'd been lying there, just staring off into space, only that the next thing he knew, his mother was calling him from downstairs.

"Ty! I'm home! Aren't you up yet?"

"Y-yeah!" he shakily replied, climbing to his feet. "Be down in a minute!" Heading over to his dresser, he hurriedly put on the first pieces of clothing he could find, trying his best not to look at his reflection. He was just about to head out of his room when he realized he'd forgotten about the stupid ears. Heart pounding, he headed over to his closet, searching for something, _anything_, that could conceal them. Finally settling on a black and white baseball cap, he shoved it onto his head, checked to make sure that his ears weren't visible beneath it, and headed downstairs.

His mother was sitting on the couch in the living room, a worried look on her face. "Are you feeling alright Tyson? It's just…you haven't been quite yourself lately."

_No, kidding, _he thought to himself in dismay. "I'm fine Mom," he replied, not meeting her gaze.

"Ty?" she asked, getting up and putting a hand on his shoulder. "You know you can talk to me about anything, right?"

He hesitated, knowing that there was something that he _had _to ask…

"Mom," he began, swallowing as a lump formed in his throat, "am I…am I adopted?"

His mother's eyes filled with tears and she pulled him close in a tight embrace. "I'm sorry Ty! I _meant_ to tell you! I just…I wanted to wait until you were ready. But it looks like I've waited too long. I'm sorry Tyson. So very sorry."

He hugged his mother back, tears threatening to well up in his own eyes. "How…Why…?" he asked, not sure how to get the words out.

His mother smiled a sad smile, then walked over to the closet and pulled out a photo album. Taking a seat next to her on the couch, he listened intently as she began her story.

"You see, your father was working for the police force at the time. We found you abandoned on the front porch one night, all alone in the world. Your father tried to locate your parents, but was unsuccessful. It was odd, as if you'd just…appeared out of thin air. So, we went through the process of adopting you, and made you a part of our family. We'd always wanted a son." His mother reached out, putting a comforting hand on his shoulder. "We tried to give you all the love in the world Ty."

_So, that's why she was being so super nice lately! _Tyson realized, looking over at his mother with a mixture of shock, anger, and sadness. _My whole life has been nothing but a lie!_ As he thought about the furry ears tucked within his hat, the full implications came crashing down on him like a ton of bricks. _My parents adopted a child that's not even human…_

He felt his mother take his hand in hers and give it a compassionate squeeze. "This came for you today," she said, placing a plain white envelope in his lap. She got up and made her way to the kitchen, a smile on her face, though it looked forced. "I can see that you need some time to yourself to take all of this in. Look Ty, as far as I'm concerned, you _are_ myreal son. And I will _always _love you." And with that, she headed into the kitchen leaving Tyson alone with his thoughts…and the strange envelope.

_Oh well, _Tyson thought with a sigh. _Things can't possibly get any worse. _Tearing open the envelope, Tyson's eyes widened in surprise as he saw what was inside.

It was a letter:

_Dear Tyson,_

_It has come to our attention that you have certain…talents, which would make you a perfect candidate for Chimera Academy. If you plan on attending, please come to the pier this afternoon at 4:00 sharp with your belongings. A boat will be waiting to take you to the schools location, which must remain secret to all accept students. We feel that it would be to your advantage to attend, and will be awaiting your decision. _

_Sincerely,  
><em>_Professor Bishop _

Tyson read the letter, then read it again, unable to believe what he was seeing. Had he _actually _been accepted into a dueling school?

"YEEEESSSSS!" he cheered, doing a little dance in excitement. After finally managing to calm down somewhat and gather his thoughts, he turned to the letter in his hands and frowned. _Chimera Academy? Never heard of it. Still, I guess it's better than nothing, and they really did sound like they were looking forward to seeing me,_ he thought with a shrug, thrilled at the thought of _finally _being accepted into a dueling school.

Running upstairs, he quickly began packing his things, pausing as he spotted his reflection in the mirror, and groaning as he realized what he'd been wearing. In his haste, he'd thrown on that flannel t-shirt his father had gotten him for Christmas, the one he'd _swore _he'd never wear. Worse still, he'd managed to put it on not only inside out, but backwards as well. Tugging off the shirt in embarrassment, he pulled out his favorite black t-shirt, the front of which was decorated with the symbol for Earth in white writing, the action of doing so causing the baseball cap to topple off his head, revealing his purple cat ears.

Sighing, Tyson reached down and picked up the cap, placing it firmly atop his head. _How in the world am I supposed to keep this a secret? _he wondered, not wanting to miss out on what could be his only chance to get into a duel school.

Deciding that as long as he kept his ears hidden, no one would be the wiser, Tyson shoved his things into his suitcase, more excited than a kid on Christmas morning.

* * *

><p>Tyson stood at the pier, staring out at the water, the ocean breeze gently ruffling his hair. This was it. This was the moment he'd been waiting for his entire life. He turned to wish his parents goodbye, his father having taken off work early in order to see him off. He wrapped them both in a tight hug, feeling a twinge of sadness as he recalled that they weren't <em>really<em> his parents.

"Take care Ty," his mother whispered, trying not to cry. "Make sure to write us every chance you get!"

Tyson wrinkled his nose. "Write? Like with _paper_?"

"Now son," his father scolded, "when I was your age-"

"Kidding!" Tyson hastily interrupted, not wanting to hear one of his father's When-I-Was-Your-Age speeches. "I'll write whenever I can," he promised, causing his father to nod in approval.

"A phone call wouldn't hurt either," his father pointed out, causing Tyson to laugh.

"Ok! Ok! I'll call you at least once a week!" he chuckled, giving his parents one last hug as the boat pulled in to dock.

Tyson stared at it in awe for a moment, tension and excitement welling up inside of him. The vessel that was to take him to his new schools location was in fact a fancy cruise ship, clearly big enough to accommodate hundreds of people.

_Wow,_ Tyson thought, as he proceeded to wheel his suitcase towards the ship, _whatever Chimera Academy is, they sure know how to make a good first impression! _

"Invitation?" a man in front of the ship asked in a gruff voice, sounding bored.

Tyson blinked, not sure what the man wanted, before remembering the letter. Digging through his jeans pocket, he took out and unfolded the crumpled up piece of paper and handed it to the man, who raised an eyebrow. Tyson shrugged and the man let out a sigh, shaking his head.

"All right, yer good," he replied in an accent Tyson couldn't quite place, handing the letter back and motioning him aboard. "The ship'll be departin' shortly. Yer cabins number A-17, got that?" Tyson nodded and excitedly made his way onto the ship, not catching the man's amused smile. "Ah, strange lad, that 'on. Lose 'is head if it weren't attached to 'is neck!" the man chuckled, looking towards the ship. "Ah, he'll be givin' 'em no end 'o trouble at th' academy!"

After getting onto the ship and locating his cabin, Tyson proceeded to get his suitcase tucked away and sat down on top of his bed to await the trip to Chimera Academy. From what he'd gathered, it was going to be a long trip, though meals would be provided.

After sitting in his room for a while, Tyson grew bored and decided to have a look around deck. Things had been pretty quiet earlier, but now that the ship had set sail, people were beginning to grow restless; several passengers were already engaged in duels or friendly conversation, and there was even a game of volleyball going on. Tyson blushed heavily as he passed several girls in their swimwear sunbathing at the main deck. He did a double take as he thought he recognized Valerie amongst them, but when he looked again, she had vanished.

Deciding that he must have imagined it, Tyson stared out at the water, the crystal clear waves hitting the side of the ship, causing it to gently rock back and forth and back and forth and back and forth…

"Uhhh…" Tyson moaned, putting his hand to his mouth and running back to his cabin at top speed.

After finally managing to pull his head out of the toilet, Tyson decided that the best thing to do would be to get some sleep, and hope the seasickness would pass.

* * *

><p><em>Later that night…<em>

Tyson wasn't sure how long he'd been asleep for, but after waking up he found that he felt much better and, strangely, hungry. Picking up a menu from the side of his bed, which simply read, "You think it, we cook it!" Tyson began to ponder what he felt like eating, the first thing popping into his head being grilled salmon.

_Man, I hope that's the sailing part of me talking and not the feline part! _he sighed, hitting the PA button on the wall.

Dinner was surprisingly delicious. Not only was there no Muffin around to take it, but he couldn't recall a time where fish had ever tasted so good. With a contented sigh, he decided to call it a night, looking forward to getting to Chimera Academy.

* * *

><p><em>The next morning…<em>

Tyson awoke rather reluctantly the next morning, some sort of voice having interrupted his sleep.

"Attention passengers! We will be arriving at Chimera Academy within the next hour! Please get ready to depart, and feel free to sample our breakfast buffet before you go!" the captain announced over the PA system. "Thank you for sailing with us!"

Tyson instantly snapped to attention, pulling his clothes on and running a brush through his hair, which proved to be a little difficult with cat ears, before finally placing the cap on his head and heading out the door. He had to come back moments later for his shoes and suitcase, but was too excited to be embarrassed.

Once on deck, he helped himself to a hearty breakfast, eyes peeled for any sign of the school the entire time. Then, at last, there it was; just a tiny island out on the horizon, and yet, the start of what would surely turn out to be something wonderful.

* * *

><p>Author's notes: Well, that's chapter four, hope everybody is enjoying the fanfic so far! :) Next chapter will be when Tyson arrives at the academy and things should start to get interesting! As I'm sure many of you have noticed by now, I'm trying to update this every Wednesday, that way you have an idea of when to expect the next chapter.<p>

Thanks for reading everybody, and don't forget to review! Thank you! ^_^


	5. Welcome to Chimera Academy

Chapter 5: Welcome to Chimera Academy

Heading down the dock towards Chimera Academy, Tyson's heart began to race with excitement. This was it, the moment he had been waiting for! A gust of wind blew through the area, causing him to have to hold his hat in place to keep it from being blown off. He sighed as he thought of the pair of cat ears concealed within said cap, the realization that he wasn't actually human still at the front of his mind.

_I'm not going to let this get in the way of my one chance to get into a dueling school! _he thought to himself, eyes full of determination. _Besides, it's just a stupid pair of cat ears! _he laughed, figuring that as long as he kept them hidden, he could attend the school without drawing attention to himself. _What could go wrong? _

As Tyson made his way onto the island, he caught his first glimpse of the building that was Chimera Academy. The large mansion like building towered above everything, clearly large enough to house hundreds, maybe even thousands of students. A pair of fountains decorated the lawn, adding to the overall air of importance. In front of the school stood a large stone statue of some sort of beast type monster which somewhat resembled a winged lion. Its lifeless eyes seemed to be watching Tyson as he approached the building, sending a chill down his spine.

Still, it was the building itself that made him the most uneasy. Despite the fancy air it tried to put on, the building itself appeared to be rather run down. What clearly used to be white was now a shade of gray, the paint peeling in several places. A few of the shingles on the jet black roof appeared to have come loose, and as Tyson continued to study the building, he noticed that one of the windows was cracked. Not at all what one would expect from a fancy dueling school.

_Maybe it looks better on the inside, _Tyson thought to himself uneasily as he pulled his suitcase towards the door.

As Tyson entered the main hall, he was shocked to see that it did indeed look nicer on the inside, so much so that it was startling. He gazed in awe at the red velvet carpet, at the fancy chandelier, at the expensive looking vase, feeling like he'd stepped into a mansion rather than a school. A large staircase stood nearby leading the way to the second floor, and just by glancing around one could tell that there was enough room to accommodate the ship full of students, and many more besides.

Tyson stood there feeling a little overwhelmed as the hall quickly filled with teachers, all of them scrambling to get everybody where they needed to go, and only half of the students were listening.

"All right, listen up!" a voice called out, rising above all the others. Everyone instantly went silent and turned towards the sound of the voice where a man stood, looking like he could really use some aspirin. "Girls rooms are upstairs, boys are downstairs. I'm telling you this now to avoid any "confusion" that may arise. Now, if you would all be patient and speak to either myself or one of the other teachers, we'll get you all sorted before too much longer." After saying this, he proceeded to rub his temples as if trying to ease away a headache. "Oh these children will be the death of me!" he sighed, clearly wishing to be anywhere but there.

The students quickly began to scramble for the nearest teacher, and Tyson found himself being bumped and jostled, eventually forcing him to weave his way through the crowd towards the only unoccupied teacher left.

The man stood rubbing his temples, muttering, "The death of me," over and over under his breath and looking more than a little frazzled.

"Um…excuse me," Tyson said in effort to get the man's attention, "but could you maybe tell me where my room is?"

The man looked up at Tyson with tired eyes, mouth seemingly fixed in a permanent frown. "Name?"

"Tyson Mathews."

The man raised an eyebrow then sighed and shook his head. "Room 117. Your roommates are a Mr. Josh Gooding and a Mr. Ezekiel Reed." Tyson stood there for a moment before the man sighed and gave him a look of impatience. "Well, what are you waiting for? Get moving!"

Snapping to attention, Tyson quickly set off in search of his room, which turned out to be a difficult task. Though he only had to worry about the ground floor, the hallways seemed to stretch on forever, making him wonder if he'd ever find his room. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, he spotted room number 117, opened the door, and went inside.

He immediately spotted two boys around his age who looked up at the sudden intrusion.

The first looked more surprised than anything. He peeked out over the top bunk, blue eyes wide with confusion. He pulled a pair of headphones off of his head which were plugged into a handheld game system, letting them fall around his neck. His messy black hair made it clear that he had not been expecting company, as did the wrinkled grey t-shirt he was wearing, which was clearly inside out.

His second roommate looked rather irritated at the intrusion, and his gaze made that quite obvious. His pale lavender eyes seemed like they could burn a hole through your soul. He was currently sprawled out on the bottom bunk of the second bed in the room, book in hand. He pushed a strand of his long blue-green hair out of his face before closing the book and glaring daggers at Tyson, who took a step backwards, slightly unnerved.

"Um…your Josh and Ezekiel, right?" he asked, trying to break the ice.

"It's Zeke," the boy with the book replied, setting the item down on the stand beside the bed. As he did so, Tyson was just able to catch a glimpse of the title: _ESP: The Secrets of Being Psychic_.

"I'm sorry, I should've knocked," Tyson replied awkwardly as the boy continued to glare at him.

"Hey don't worry!" the boy from the other bunk laughed, causing Tyson to relax slightly. "Zeke gets mad at anyone who interrupts him while he's reading. I can't even play my favorite video games anymore!"

Zeke rolled his eyes. "You can as long as you use head phones. I think that's a fair compromise!"

"Whatever," Josh shrugged, fiddling with his game a moment before hitting the power switch and shoving both it and the headphones into a backpack. "You're just a spoil sport!"

Zeke looked as if he was about to protest, but suddenly his eyes glowed a bright yellow and he stared off into space for a moment as if seeing something no one else could see. After a couple of seconds he shook his head and turned to Tyson, a strange look on his face.

"So you're our new roommate." It wasn't a question; it was a fact.

"Uh…yeah, my name's-"

"Tyson," Zeke supplied, once again as if stating something that was common knowledge.

"How did you-"

"I read your mind. Quite by accident, of course," he explained, as if it were no big deal. An amused smile spread its way across his face. "I also know what's under that hat."

Tyson adjusted the black and white baseball cap, a nervous lump forming in his throat. _How does he know?_ Suddenly, Tyson felt a tug as the baseball cap flew off his head and floated across the room and into Zeke's hand, who gave him a triumphant smile.

Automatically Tyson's hands shot up to the top of his head in an attempt to conceal the purple cat ears. Millions of thoughts entered his head, the idea that he might be expelled or end up as a science experiment being top on the list.

"Jeez, relax would you?" Zeke chuckled, twirling the cap around on his finger. "It's not like we haven't seen worse."

"Yeah really," Josh agreed, as he made his way down the ladder. "Why bother hiding it?"

Tyson was about to speak when he saw something that made his eyes practically pop out of his head. Sticking out of the seat of Josh's pants was a bushy fox tail, the fur pure red up until the white tip.

Tyson stared open mouthed at the furry appendage for a moment before his eyes rolled back in his head and he fainted, landing on the floor with an audible thump.

* * *

><p>Tyson awoke to find himself lying on the bottom bunk of a bed, his roommates staring at him with apparent concern.<p>

"Uhh…what happened?"

"You fainted," Zeke laughed, causing Josh to shoot him an irritated glare. "What? I thought that was pretty obvious."

_What a crazy dream, _Tyson thought to himself with a groan, as he began to force himself into a sitting position. _For a second there, I could've sworn…_ He froze, staring wide-eyed at what stood behind Josh: a furry red fox tail.

"Don't faint on us again, please?" Zeke sighed, rubbing his forehead. "Besides, you're not exactly normal either, Mr. Catnipped Kitty."

"How did you…?" Tyson began, then reached up to the top of his head, eyes widening as he realized that his hat was missing.

"Looking for this?" Zeke laughed, twirling the cap around on his finger.

"Give it back!" Tyson shouted, making a dive for Zeke, who tossed it to Josh. Tyson watched in shock and dismay as the tip of Josh's tail ignited and he set the hat on fire, burning it to a crisp.

"Sorry Tyson," Josh sighed, as he extinguished the flames, "but this is for your own good." He walked over and put a hand on Tyson's shoulder, looking sympathetic. "You don't have to hide it here. Don't worry, everybody's real nice, you'll see!"

Tyson blinked, trying hard not to stare at Josh's tail and failing miserably. "So…there are other people like me?"

"Of course!" Josh laughed, giving Tyson a friendly thump on the back. "What? Did you think that you were the only one?" Tyson nodded. "The Beast type monsters aren't the only ones with a link to the human world, you know. I'm a Fox Fire, as you've probably already guessed," Josh explained, gesturing to his tail. "Pyro types were always my favorite, and now I know why. You like Beast types, right?"

"Yeah," Tyson admitted, still trying to process what he was hearing.

Josh nodded understandingly. "Don't worry, it'll take some getting used to, but most people adjust to it pretty quickly."

"You mean there are _more _people like us?"

"Sure. The teachers say that there are about twenty of us out there, one for each monster type."

"Wow," Tyson marveled, not sure what to say.

"Yeah, I know. And then you have your _gifted_ duelists; psychics like Zeke," he motioned towards Zeke, who offered a little wave, "those who can bring the cards to life, those who can see Duel Spirits, which is pretty much everybody, and anything else you can imagine," Josh explained excitedly, tail flame briefly igniting. "And that's just the beginning."

Tyson stared at his two roommates, the Fox Fire and the psychic, in awe. "Just what kind of school is this?"

"Well, it's sort of a safe house," Zeke explained. "A place where people like us can be free of judgment by the outside world. A place where we can learn to control our special abilities without fear."

"But…I don't have any _special abilities_," Tyson explained, rather confused.

"Sure, you keep telling yourself that Cat Boy," Zeke laughed, gentling taking one of Tyson's furry ears between his fingers. "You're in stage one."

"Stage one?" Tyson asked, jerking out of Zeke's grip.

"Denial," Zeke explained, a smirk on his face. "Trust me, if you weren't special, you wouldn't be here. Besides, how many people do you know with cat ears?"

"Uhh…" Tyson felt his ears droop, a sensation that he still wasn't used to.

"My point exactly. Don't worry, you'll like it here." Tyson watched as Zeke's eyes glowed yellow once more. "I've already foreseen it." And with that, he went over to his bunk and resumed reading, leaving Tyson alone with his thoughts.

* * *

><p>Tyson lay on the bottom bunk of one of the beds-what was to be his spot-lost in his own thoughts. <em>So they invited me here because I'm a freak of nature? I can't even get in based on my own skills? <em>Tyson sighed, his ears drooping, the sensation causing him to shudder. When they had been tucked away inside his hat, it was easy to pretend that they weren't there, but now they were out in the open, twitching at every sound or change in emotion that he felt. It was getting really hard for him to ignore. Reaching up and gently taking hold of his furry ears, he began to wonder if he would ever get used to them. _Oh well, at least things can't get any worse. _

"Never say things can't get any worse," Zeke laughed, turning towards Tyson, eyes glowing a bright yellow. "They always do."

"Do you _have_ to read my mind?" Tyson sighed, causing Zeke to smirk.

"Sorry, I can't really control my abilities yet." He closed his book and turned to Tyson, a slightly irritated look on his face. "And you have very loud thoughts. Mind keeping it down?"

Tyson blinked in confusion. _How am I supposed to think __**quieter**__?_ he wondered. Still, he nodded, and returned to his own musings.

Cat ears. He had _cat ears_ on top of his head. How Josh managed to deal with having a tail on a daily basis was beyond him. He closed his eyes, trying to see if his hearing had improved since he'd gotten them, and was immediately able to make out a strange tune coming from nearby. Glancing up to the bunk above him, he spotted Josh, once again immersed in his game, headphones fixed atop his head. Deciding that his hearing _had _gotten better, Tyson rolled onto his back and tried to think of something else, anything else.

With nothing else to think about, Tyson found himself beginning to drift off, his eyes beginning to close…

"HIGH SCORE!" Josh screamed, tail flame igniting in a glorious blaze of fire, the sprinkler above him going off.

"And that's why he gets top bunk, as _far away _from me as possible," Zeke groaned, running a hand over the cover of his book protectively.

Tyson sighed as he heard Josh scrambling to keep his electronics dry.

Yep, this was going to be interesting.

* * *

><p>Author's notes: Yes, that's right, this isn't your typical school that Tyson's found himself enrolled in! Next chapter we'll get to see what his classes are going to be like, and meet some of his teachers, with the possibility of a familiar face showing up! :)<p>

Well until next time, thanks for reading everybody and don't forget to review! Thank you! :)


	6. School Days

Chapter 6: School Days

Tyson lay in the bunk beneath Josh, trying in vain to get some sleep. Ever since the sprinkler incident he'd tried to get Zeke to swap him spots, but to no avail. But truthfully, that wasn't the real reason why he couldn't sleep. His roommates had already told him that he'd get his schedule tomorrow and start attending classes, but honestly, he wasn't sure he liked this school.

_The only reason they want me here is because I'm a freak right? _Tyson wondered, reaching up and touching his furry ears. _And they honestly expect me to just attend class looking like this like it's no big deal? _He let out a heavy sigh, his ears twitching in frustration. _Man, what did I get myself into?_

Deciding that he should at least _try_ to get some sleep, Tyson rolled over onto his side, his eyelids already beginning to grow heavy…

* * *

><p>"Hello Tyson."<p>

Tyson jumped at the sound of the voice, turning around to find Green Baboon smiling at him.

"This…this isn't _really _a dream, is it?" Tyson asked, knowing that he wasn't going to like the answer.

"No Tyson, this is very real, though I find it easiest to communicate with you in your dreams." He regarded the clearly very freaked out teenager with a look of sympathy. "I'd be happy to answer any questions you might have."

"What's _happening to me_?" Tyson demanded, reaching up and giving his furry ears a tug, only to be met with a wave of pain.

Green Baboon sighed. "You are one of many children sent to the human world to fulfill an important purpose. You were given a human form, but sadly that form has begun to weaken, as you can clearly see. I'm so sorry Tyson, it wasn't supposed to happen this quickly."

"Wait, so you're saying that I'm going to _keep changing_?" Tyson asked, fear beginning to well up inside of him.

"Yes," Green Baboon said quietly, lowering his head and not meeting Tyson's horrified gaze. "You will keep changing until you are a complete Catnipped Kitty."

"But I don't _want_ to be a Catnipped Kitty!" Tyson protested, nearing hysterics. "I don't even _like _the thing!"

Green Baboon looked up, his eyes full of sorrow. "I'm sorry Tyson, but there is nothing I can do."

"Nooooo!" Tyson screamed, shooting up in bed, his head drenched in sweat. Climbing out of bed, he hurried to the bathroom and clicked on the light.

For a long time he stared at his reflection in the mirror, both so familiar to him and so alien all at the same time. Cautiously, he ran one of his fingers lightly over the purple fur that coated his ears, taking the time to admit that the sensation wasn't an unpleasant experience. He tried to imagine what it would be like to be covered in that fur, only to have panic rise up within him once more.

With a sigh, he put his head against the cool glass, his ears drooping in response to his apparent despair. There was a knock at the door and they twitched in response to the sudden sound, surprising Tyson infinitely more than the knock itself.

Turning around, he spotted Josh standing in the doorway, his expression one of concern.

"You ok?"

Tyson was about to say, "yes," but couldn't bring himself to do it. He shook his head.

Josh smiled, though it was a sad smile. "I didn't think so." He walked over to Tyson, his gaze slowly shifting to his own tail. "You know, when I first got this thing, I tried to hide it, just like you." He grimaced at the memory. "It lit my pants on fire."

Tyson laughed in spite of himself, Josh quickly joining in. "So…how'd it happen? Getting a tail, I mean."

"Well, it all started when I got that Fox Fire card. Shortly after that, weird stuff started to happen, like fainting during the middle of a duel, or feeling like I was disconnected from my body." Tyson stared at his roommate, eyes widening at the similarity of their situations. "Then things started getting _really weird_. I noticed this lump that was forming on my…well, you know, and I wasn't really sure what to make of it. At first I figured it was just a mosquito bite or something, you know, no big deal, but then it started _growing_."

_That's just like what happened to me! _Tyson realized, remembering how he had come up with excuses for what was happening to his ears.

"I tried to ignore it," Josh continued with a sigh, "to pretend that there was nothing wrong, but after a while…Well, let's face it, a three inch long stub that's starting to grow a thin layer of fuzz is a hard thing to ignore," Josh laughed, looking a little embarrassed. "Needless to say, I was freaked, but I couldn't just go up to my parents and say, "Guess what? I'm growin' a tail!" so, I did what most people would do: I continued to ignore it. Sure, it was getting a little uncomfortable hiding the continuingly growing tail in my pants, but I didn't know what else to do. Then one day I wake up with a fully developed fox tail growin' out of my butt. I tried to shove it into my pants like I always did, but as soon as I tried, it lit them on fire," Josh explained, grinning sheepishly. "Seems like my tail doesn't like closed spaces." He glanced at the furry appendage, which twitched as if in agreement.

"What did you do?" Tyson asked, regarding his new friend with interest.

"Well, I put out the fire of course!" Josh laughed, causing Tyson to blush in embarrassment. "Then I grabbed a new pair of jeans, cut a hole in them, and threaded my tail through. After that, I had myself a good old fashioned panic attack while I tried to figure out what to do next. Next thing I know, there's some guys at my house telling me all about Chimera Academy; how it's for guys like me and that I won't have to hide anymore." Josh turned to Tyson, a sad smile on his face. "When you've got a tail that can light stuff on fire, there really isn't anywhere you _can_ go."

"So…you're here because you have to be?" Tyson asked, not really liking the sound of that.

"Where else can I go?" Josh asked, shrugging. "I'm not exactly normal."

_That's true, _Tyson thought, reaching a hand up to touch one of his cat ears. _Where else __**would **__I go? _

"Besides," Josh added, noticing Tyson's expression, "this really is a pretty cool place." He turned and headed towards the door, a smile on his face. "You'll like it here, Tyson. Trust me."

Tyson watched Josh go, a slight smile finding its way to his face. "Thanks Josh, I needed that," he whispered, before heading back to his bed and trying to get some sleep.

* * *

><p>Tyson awoke the next morning to an irritating buzzing above his head. He tried to ignore it, but the sound refused to let up, and he glanced above him irritably, ears flattening against his head.<p>

Josh lay sprawled out on the top bunk, snoring away, his tail hanging over the edge like an old sock. Next to him was his cell phone, which was buzzing rather loudly, apparently meant to serve as a sort of wake up call.

_Wake up call? _Tyson wondered, as sleep began to leave him. _Holy crap! I'm gonna be late! _Scrambling out of bed, he headed towards the bathroom, pausing long enough to alert the very tired Fox Fire that his alarm had gone off.

Josh blinked at the panicky Catnipped Kitty who had just run into the bathroom, then realizing that the alarm really _was _going off, toppled out of bed and landed on the floor with a thump, apparently forgetting that he was on the top bunk.

Stepping into the shower and proceeding to lather the shampoo into his long brown hair, which proved to be slightly awkward with cat ears, Tyson let his mind wander to his classes. Would the teachers like him? Would he make any new friends? And, most importantly, was everybody _really_ just going to ignore the fact that he had cat ears like it was no big deal? He let out a sigh, recalling that Josh had torched the only hat he had thought to bring.

Jeez guys, you couldn't just let me adjust to this at my own pace?

Tyson's ears twitched as water hit them, which he quickly found out was not the most pleasant sensation in the world. Trying his best to keep the water out of his ears, Tyson finished his shower, got dressed, brushed his hair, and headed out of the bathroom, to find a very tired looking Josh shoving several books into his bag, eyes only half open.

"They left your schedule," Josh muttered sleepily, motioning towards the note taped to the door. "Zeke should be at the cafeteria by now…" he trailed off, eyes closing as he began to doze off. A couple seconds later, he let out a yawn and resumed what he had been doing, clearly not awake yet.

Tyson observed the scene with a shrug, then walked over to the door and pulled off the note, curious as to how he could have a schedule already when he hadn't registered for anything.

_Dear Tyson, _

_It is my pleasure to welcome you to Chimera Academy. I hope that you will take this opportunity to not only improve your dueling skills, but also to meet others like yourself and get to know your own unique talents. It is my greatest hope that you will eventually grow to accept your gift and not let it hold you back from living the life you wish to live. In order to help with your transition, I have personally selected several classes that I believe would be the most beneficial to your unique situation. I thank you very much for attending Chimera Academy, it is a pleasure to have you here. _

_Sincerely,  
><em>_Professor Bishop _

_Living the life I want to live? How am I supposed to do that? _Tyson growled, glaring angrily at the letter in his hands. Flipping the paper over, he found his schedule was attached to it with a piece of tape.

_8:00-9:30_ _Dueling Strategies_

_9:40-11:40 Dueling 101_

_11:50-12:50 Lunch_

_1:00-1:50 Math_

_2:00-3:00 Introduction to Beast Types_

Tyson blinked in surprise when he noticed that Introduction to Beast Types was on his schedule, then figured that this Professor Bishop person had to know about his "condition" if he had been accepted into the school in the first place. Deciding that the classes actually looked pretty interesting, except for Math of course, Tyson figured that he might as well at least _try_ to like this school.

Trying his best to shake away the feeling that something bad was going to happen, Tyson followed the still half asleep Josh to the cafeteria for breakfast.

* * *

><p>"Will you relax?" Josh asked with a yawn, as Tyson continued to glance around the hallway nervously. "I've been here for a semester already and trust me, nobody pays stuff like that any attention!"<p>

Tyson regarded Josh uncertainly for a moment, then sighed figuring that, with the fox tail and everything, Josh had to know what he was talking about.

Tyson's eyes widened as he entered the cafeteria: it was packed. The room was bustling with students, everyone chatting, eating breakfast, trading cards, and in general, looking like they were having a pretty good time. What really surprised him, however, was the large amount of monsters that seemed to be there amongst the students, although they did appear to be transparent, making Tyson wonder if he was going crazy.

"What's the matter, never seen a Duel Spirit before?" Josh asked, a smile on his face.

"You mean you can see them too?" Tyson asked, surprised. "I'm not just seeing things?"

Josh let out a laugh, shaking his head. "_Everybody_ can see them Tyson. It's not really a big deal! Come on, let's get something to eat!"

Tyson nodded, taking one last look at the scene before him before following his friend to where the trays were stacked.

"So, you think you're going to like your classes?" Josh asked, placing a carton of milk on his tray.

"Probably," Tyson agreed, surprised that he wasn't getting any weird looks. "Well, except math. Why do we need to take that anyway?"

Josh shrugged. "The teachers always tell me that math is "an integral part of Dueling," whatever that means. You just gotta deal with it."

After getting breakfast, the duo quickly located Zeke at a nearby table, his nose in a book as usual.

"Hey-"

"Reading," Zeke said, without even looking up. Still, he made no sign that he objected to their presence, so Tyson went ahead and set down his tray, pausing long enough to catch the title of Zeke's latest read, _You Already Know How This Book Ends: How to Keep Your Precognition From Ruining All of Life's Surprises._

"Don't mind him, he's always like this," Josh explained, taking a seat next to Tyson. "Not much of a talker, but he always knows what's on your mind, and I do mean _always._"

"Something I'm still working on," Zeke muttered, turning the page of his book, a slight frown on his face. "And in answer to your question Tyson, no I can't quite control my powers yet. I did mention that earlier, you know."

Tyson blinked, surprised and a little unnerved that Zeke knew what he had been thinking. "So-"

"No, I can't just use my abilities whenever I want, it just sort of happens," Zeke explained, eyes aglow. "But I'm getting better." He frowned and looked over at Josh. "The answer is still no."

"Darn," Josh sighed, hanging his head, causing Tyson to look at him questioningly. "I asked him to help me with my math homework-"

"You asked me to help you _cheat_ on your math homework," Zeke sighed, rolling his eyes.

"Whatever. The point is, why can't you?"

"My visions don't work that way. Besides, I don't approve of using my abilities for personal gain."

"Ok, but couldn't you use them to help me out once in a while?" Josh asked in a pleading tone, causing Tyson to face palm.

Zeke finally looked up from his book in order to give Josh a look that clearly said, 'Are you stupid?' before shaking his head and resuming reading.

* * *

><p>After breakfast, Tyson began to make his way to his first class. He was disappointed to find out that he didn't share any of his classes with Josh and Zeke, except for math, but decided that he could take the opportunity to get to know some of the other students at Chimera Academy.<p>

As he opened the door, he froze as all eyes turned to stare at him. He felt his ears twitch in embarrassment, and he was considering walking out of the room right then and there, when a voice made him stop.

"You're late."

Tyson looked over to the front of the room, where the same teacher he had spoken to the day before, the "Death of Me Guy," stood looking very irritated, his foot tapping impatiently on the hard wood floor.

"Sorry, I…kinda got lost," Tyson admitted, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.

The man rolled his eyes. "Just take your seat Mr. Mathews."

Tyson gave a polite nod, then quickly made his way to one of the unoccupied seats and sat down. The other students turned back to their professor, clearly not paying him any mind.

_That's a relief, _Tyson sighed, allowing himself to relax a little. Unfortunately, this didn't last long.

"Since you failed to be here at the specified time, you get to help with today's lesson: deck construction. Now if you'd let me see your deck?"

"Huh?" Tyson asked, not entirely sure that the man was talking about him.

The man's brow furrowed. "Your _deck_ please, Mr. Mathews."

"Oh! Uh…yeah, sure, just a sec!"

The man began to tap his foot impatiently, as Tyson pulled his deck out of its case attached to his belt, then sighed when Tyson handed it to him. He skimmed through the deck for a few minutes before slamming his hand down on the desk, causing Tyson to jump.

"Unacceptable! You call yourself a Beast type Duelist, and yet you don't even have a complete Guardians of the Forest set? No Big Koala, no Behemoth, and why in the world is Beast King Barbaros in here?"

"Um…'cause it's powerful?" Tyson hesitantly replied.

The man began to rub his temples. "Yes, I realize that it is powerful, but do you realize, Mr. Mathews, that it is a Beast _Warrior_ type monster?" Tyson nodded, causing the man to sigh even more heavily. "Then _why in the world is it in here?_"

"Um…well, there aren't very many powerful Beast types," Tyson tried to explain, watching as the man's frown continued to increase, "and my parents gave it to me for my birthday…"

There were several snorts from across the room and the man shook his head. "You do realize that they weren't _really _your parents, don't you?"

"Yes," Tyson replied, wishing that he could simply sink into his chair and disappear.

The man sighed, seemingly to calm his nerves. "All right, ignoring your sentimentality for a moment, what exactly was the plan here?"

"Well…I checked out his effects," here he noticed the man's expression look somewhat hopeful, "and I figured that I could combo him with my Catnipped Kitty cards, sacrificing the three of them in order to summon him and clear out my opponents' side of the field."

The man's expression immediately fell and he face palmed. Several students turned to stare at him, causing Tyson to wonder what he had done wrong.

"You're telling me that you would _deliberately_ send your Soul Card to the Graveyard in order to summon this?" the man asked after a long pause.

"My what?" Tyson asked, confused.

The man let out an impatient sounding groan. "Your ears, Mr. Mathews! Your _ears_! They _are _Catnipped Kitty ears, are they not?"

"Yeah…" Tyson muttered, running a hand over one of his ears self-consciously.

"Then why, may I ask, would you sacrifice the card that so _clearly _represents you?"

"To beat the other guy?" Tyson replied uncertainly, sinking down in his seat.

The man stared at him blankly, seemingly at a loss for words. After an _extremely_ long pause, he finally asked, "Did no one bother to explain to you what your situation entails?" Tyson slowly shook his head. The man let out a _very_ long sigh. "What _do_ you know about your situation?"

"Um…that I was sent here from the world of Duel Monsters for some reason, that I'm not really human, that there are other people like me, that weird things have been happening ever since I got those cards, and that I'm turning into a Catnipped Kitty."

The man blinked, then sighed once more. "Well, I suppose that's a _start._" Tyson said nothing, beginning to wish that he had never opened his big mouth in the first place and wishing more than ever that he could simply be normal.

The rest of the class went rather uneventfully, with Tyson sitting quietly in his seat, hoping to not draw further unwanted attention to himself. Eventually, the bell rang, and Tyson quickly began to make his way to the door, only to stop when he heard the professor's voice.

"Mr. Mathews, I would like to see you after class."

Tyson flinched, but slowly made his way back towards his new teacher, the man regarding him with a deep frown. The rest of the students quickly piled their way out of the room, leaving Tyson to face whatever the man had planned alone.

"Y-yes sir?" Tyson finally asked, hoping to break the tension that hung in that room like an invisible curtain.

"So, I'm to understand that you know next to nothing about your situation?" Not sure what to say, Tyson nodded. The man sighed and rubbed his temples. "All right, let's start at the beginning. You are aware that you were sent here from the world of Duel Monsters to fulfill a purpose, correct?" Tyson nodded. "Good. Now, did anyone speak to you about it in further detail?"

"Uhh…" Tyson hesitated, not really wanting to discuss his dreams with this man, or anyone else for that matter. "…no."

The man groaned. "Surely one of the Beast type Monsters said _something? _All of the other Soul Duelists we've encountered have reported-"

"You mean _everybody_ has dreams like mine?"

The man face palmed. "_Yes_ Mr. Mathews. May I continue?" Tyson nodded. "Right. Well, did they say anything important?"

"Uhh…Green Baboon said that he would keep in touch, I really don't think Yellow Baboon and Ancient Crimson Ape like me all that much."

The man gave Tyson a look that seemed to say, 'I wonder why?' before continuing. "And they _did _explain some things to you, _didn't_ they?"

"Well, I think they tried, but I thought it was just a dream," Tyson muttered, as the man's eye twitched. "I know it's real _now_!" he added, hoping to avoid angering the man.

"Yes, well, I suppose the past can't be changed. But please, next time you have one of these dreams, do pay attention!" Tyson nodded, not sure what else to do. "All right, now on to explain a few things. First of all, you are a Catnipped Kitty."

_Well, DUH,_ Tyson thought, ears drooping in boredom. _Tell me something I don't know!_

The man gave Tyson an irritated glare. "Your ears betray your emotions; be patient, Mr. Mathews, I'm getting to it."

_Stupid ears, _Tyson thought to himself, a blush coming to his face. _Why did Zeke and Josh have to kill my hat? _

"As I was _saying_, you are a Catnipped Kitty. As you may or may not realize, your human form is beginning to weaken, thus causing you to revert to your original form."

"How do I stop it?" Tyson demanded, sounding rather desperate.

For about the hundredth time that day, the man sighed. "You don't. That is not the _point_ Mr. Mathews!"

"But I don't _want_ to be a Catnipped Kitty!" Tyson protested, trying his best to fight the panic that was beginning to well up inside of him.

The man face palmed. "Mr. Mathews, you _are _a Catnipped Kitty! Nothing is ever going to change that, as I'm sure you are coming to realize," he explained, motioning towards the pair of purple cat ears atop Tyson's head. "You can't stop the transition back to your original form. It is going to happen eventually, whether you want it to or not."

Tyson hung his head, ears drooping. "So…there's nothing I can do?"

"I'm afraid not," the man replied simply, causing Tyson's hopes to come crashing down. Noticing Tyson's saddened expression, he added, "We do offer support groups for those who are having trouble adjusting. The support group for Soul Duelists meets every Wednesday at 3:15. Stop by later today if you feel like it, and we can discuss this more then."

"You'll be there?" Tyson asked, confused.

For about the _thousandth _time that day, the man let out a long weary sigh. "_Yes_, Mr. Mathews. I happen to be the one _in charge _of that particular support group. Now, if you excuse me, I do have another class coming in, and you wouldn't want to be late, would you?"

Tyson blinked and made a beeline for the door, fearing what would happen if he were to be late again. Glancing behind him, he saw his new professor shake his head, mutter something about, "This boy is going to be the death of me!" and sit down at his desk, rubbing his head.

Frantically searching the halls, Tyson finally managed to find his classroom and sat down at a nearby empty desk, just as the bell rang. Sighing in relief, he took a brief glance around the room, taking in his surroundings, and was surprised when he spotted what appeared to be a pair of Duel Spirits. The first was unmistakably a Winged Kuriboh, hovering aimlessly about the head of the teacher, who was busy writing his name on the board in chalk. The second was a woman with a somewhat draconic appearance, her arms crossed and a somewhat amused smile on her face.

There was a squeak of chalk and the teacher finally turned around, brushing his shaggy brown hair out of his eyes and causing it to get slightly smeared with chalk. Tyson took the time to read the name written on the board: _Professor Jaden Yuki. _

* * *

><p>Author's notes: Surprised? I honestly hadn't planned on using the canon characters, but this just seemed to fit in with the plot <em>so <em>perfectly. So I'll say it now, I don't own Jaden, Winged Kuriboh, Yubel, or anyone else I don't own.

Thanks for reading everybody, feel free to review! Suggestions and questions are welcome! ^_^


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